Getting Teams to Jump Offsides in Youth Football - What is Allowed?

Trick Shift Play Backfires in Big Time College Football

Many youth football coaches are "football junkies". We like watching pro or college football. Sometimes we even see things that we think we can use for our own youth football teams. Often times this is how youth coaches come up with trick plays.

College Bowl Game SNAFU

One trick play used in this Bowl season was during the Sugar Bowl, Alabama versus Utah. Utah faced a 4th Down and short near midfield.

Utah decided to "go" for it with a play that is designed to draw the defense off-sides. This was a pretty safe and savy strategy, you are either going to get 5 free yards and a first down or you are going to take a delay of game penalty and punt on 4th down. Punting from the 45 instead of the 50 even gives your punter more room to pin Bama deep inside it's 20 yard line. No matter how the play turned out, the Utes will have improved their situation.

I'm not sure why more teams don't try this very safe tactic which often yields teams a free first down with zero risk, even at the college level. Utah started out with it's offensive linemen in very wide splits and in two-point stances and Quarterback under center. After the players had been set for at least a second, Utah then moved in unison, with the offensive linemen moving inward together to narrow the splits and the Quarterback backpedalling to a shotgun formation.

The Ruling

While the play did result in Bama jumping off-sides, the Utes were called for a 5 yard penalty for "illegally simulating the start of the play" a 5 yard penalty. The officials got it right on this one. While you can try to get teams to jump off-sides via varying cadence, players can not shift quickly in such a manner that simulates the start of a play.

We use a very legal "no play" in these situations with great success. We usually run it 2-5 times a game to get teams to jump at significant times during a game, when we want to call timeout or even when we just want teams to stop jumping or anticipating our snap count. Our success rate of getting teams to jump offsides over the last 11 seasons has always been between 70%-90%. It is a great but under used strategy in youth football.

The rule invoked in the Utah-Alabama game is why many teams that shift, do so slowly and deliberately. That is why teams that run Jet Sweep type motion plays often have their motion man take a slow deliberate drop step before he starts his full speed motion towards the quarterback.

Here is a clip of the Utah-Alabama play in action: www.youtube.com/watch?v=KB5yNZVYV3U

What Does This Mean for Youth Football Teams?

The moral of the story is, this is a great strategy and a perfect situation to run a play like this, however it was just poor play designing on the part of Utah. This coach should have known better. Now you know better, don't make the same mistake Utah did. Of course let's give Utah a break over the "body of work", they played a very brilliant and inspired game.

Dave Cisar-

With over 15 years of hands-on experience as a youth coach, Dave has developed a detailed systematic approach to developing youth players and teams. His personal teams to using this system to date have won 94% of their games in 5 Different Leagues.

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Youth Football

Roll of red tide in Knoxville to concerns about getting caught with vols.

Occupied it the seventh Alabama Crimson Tide continue his career through the SEC when they travel to Knoxville this weekend for a confrontation with the Tennessee Volunteers.

National champions back in the win column after his only defeat of the season, beating Ole Miss in Tuscaloosa last weekend, 23-10.Con victory, Nick Saban Squadron moved to 6-1, 3-1, and general conference.

It has not been a successful start to the era of Derek Dooley in Tennessee.Sus volunteers have fought for a 2-4 record and are buried in the 0-3 in the game of the SEC.El team has dropped two straight and last action contests, a defeat at the hands of Georgia Athens 41-14 October 9.

Dooley realizes what kind of computer is coming to town this week.

"Will be a true - and I'm going to tell the computer this – great honour to be able to play games like these." To grow, you always know about the third Sunday in October. We screwed up when we add more computers.But this is always one of the great traditions in college football, Tennessee and Alabama.It is what is special to this lugar.Es what makes special the SEC.Por therefore going to be a great opportunity for our players and good responsibility for how we compete against a phenomenal team which has been standard in college football in the last two years. Deep, talented, well coached. "Everyone knows about them."

The Crimson Tide hold an advantage of 46-38-7 in the series of all time with volunteers and have won 12-10 issue last year in Tuscaloosa, three straight in the series, including the memorable expired Alabama uses blocked two field goals, one time, to preserve the win.

When it is your best, Alabama mixes execution and pass with success.Everything is developed from a mainland game despite the fact that one of you on average one hefty 183.6 yards per game in 5.2 yards per carry.Certainly helps to have a lethal blow of one-two in the backfield with both second Trent Richardson (6.6 ypc, four members) and the reigning Heisman Trophy winner Mark Ingram (6.4 ypc, six members) get the job.

The constant ground assault has opened things for QB Greg McElroy, who has played pretty well in 2010, completing 71.6% of his passes for 1,517 yards, with 11 members and only three enteros.Wideouts Julio Jones (33 receptions, 448 yards, three members), Dario Hanks (17 receptions for 289 yards, two deputies) and Marquis Maze (17 receptions, for 241 yards, a Deputy) provide McElroy with lot of options in the field.

Bundles is particularly is someone who views of Saban as an artist appreciated low performer.

"Darius Hanks has been a great player for us for several years. is very athletic and very coherente.Sin doubt has improved and continues to play with better tenacity and mejor.Tiene large hands, and if there is something we must do better, is to be able to do the pelota.Nos feel as he is a man who can make plays and does a good job of routes running."

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